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Tuesday, November 14, 2017

Bobby Doerr

3 Things I can tell you about Bobby Doerr, who passed away today at the age of 99:

1) He made a 14 hour drive to Florida fly by.

My father-in-law, our friend, and I have made the drive from Virginia to Florida numerous times to catch a few Spring Training games. On one of these occasions, I brought along the book "The Teammates" by David Halberstam. It tells the story of the lifelong friendship between Ted Williams, Johnny Pesky, Dom DiMaggio, and Doerr. Ironically, it itself is a road trip book - Pesky and DiMaggio traveling to see an ailing Williams one last time (Doerr was unable to make the journey). It was a great read, and I finished the book before we hit Florida.

2) He made me tear up once.

One of the last times Doerr visited Fenway Park was when the Red Sox celebrated Fenway's 100th Anniversary. As they announced past Red Sox players, they saved two of the most revered for the end. Bobby Doerr (along with his good friend Johnny Pesky) were in wheelchairs, escorted by Tim Wakefield and Jason Varitek. It was one of those moment where you knew you may be seeing these guys for the last time. It was a goodbye of sorts, and I'll admit, it made me a little sad.

3) He's the one Ebay purchase I remember.

I've been away from the hobby for so long, I haven't bought any baseball cards off of Ebay in almost 20 years. So long ago that I can't remember anything I purchased, save one card. It was an impulse buy, one of those times where I saw a great card at a reasonable price and went for it. When I got it, I was amazed to have this autograph from a Red Sox legend: